I knew it was going to be a beautiful morning so I was up and out the door early since I planned a two-park agenda today. It was cold but the sun felt so good. My feet found the way to Council Point Park automatically and so I went exactly where they chose to take me. I was there on the trail before all the regular walkers, joggers and bikers and was enjoying my peace and solitude immensely as I walked along the perimeter path. I brought my bag of treats – more crumbed-up bread gleaned from my own loaf of bread and a fresh Ziploc bag of peanuts, but surprisingly the squirrels must have still been asleep high up in the trees because not a single furry friend came down to rush me and beg for nuts. Perhaps they all were ailing this morning, having gorged themselves on the overabundance of peanuts I threw their way yesterday. I glanced upward after hearing the motor of a small plane which interrupted my thoughts because it kept circling round and round and closer and closer to me as I was walking. The clear-as-a-bell blue sky was interrupted by contrails which crisscrossed in places looking like huge hashtags. This small plane appeared to be hopscotching across the sky in the marks made by its bigger counter-parts. At the Park, the trees are still bare and just now, the leaves are unfurling and opening up ever so slowly – in fact it seems everything in the Park is in a state of slow mo. My bag of treats was carried for naught since I saw no ducks or geese paddling down the creek today like I have in recent days. I am sharing this picture from last weekend of the ducks and geese I glimpsed as I peered through the saplings and brush at Lions Park. Though this morning’s walk may have been devoid of ducks and geese, I was regaled by a bevy of birdcalls which intensified as I walked along. Sweet tweets, warbles and chirps were abundant as the birds babbled back and forth to each other in a language only they could understand. I interjected a whistle here and there as an interlude to their “music” and today they simply ignored me … of course, they knew I was not “one of them” so I finally quit trying. I did my Park loop and at the tail end, I heard some splashing noises in the Ecorse Creek. I figured it was a goose, or perhaps that trumpet swan or heron had come back so I quickly went over closer to get a look. I saw a man in waders walking down the middle of the creek and carrying what looked like a pool-scooping net. Every so often he dunked his handled net into the water, drew it out and examined the contents. He was making alot of splashing noises in the process. I couldn’t imagine that he’d be fishing there and he was intent on his job so I didn’t want to bother him to ask. But, my curiosity got the better of me when I saw two women unloading cleaning supplies from a van with a Wayne County emblem on each door, then washing off the half-dozen picnic tables under the pavilion cover. I walked over to one of the women and we visited a little about the weather, then I asked if Wayne County was now taking care of the Park. The women told me that the County participates in nature projects with all the large parks where there is a body of water nearby. The County workers collect samples of the water from the creek, then pour the water and its sediment – critters or otherwise – into receptacles that resemble egg cartons and local elementary students can analyze the grubs and bugs and pick them up using plastic spoons. Right after she finished her explanation, she pointed at a group of youngsters walking along single file across the Park and she told me that they were kids from nearby Keppen School. A walkable field trip! I thanked her for the info and hurried to part two of my agenda – Lions Park. The trip was scenic but unlike my find a few days ago, there was no sign of life at this Park either. I was determined to discover a goose or two sitting on eggs and the eventual chance to get a gander at a some goslings come hatching time. Perhaps this whole miracle of life is similarly in slow motion just like everything else seems to be as this chilly Spring languishes through this first week of May.